The Horizon Festival

About Strathfield Rotary

(2013-14 Serving Members list at bottom of page)

THE ROTARY CLUB OF Strathfield INC.
DISTRICT 9680

Link To Strathfield Rotary Club Homepage

The Rotary Club of Strathfield was chartered on Monday 19 April 1971 at a ceremony held at Macquarie University. The Club had been sponsored by the Rotary Club of Burwood in the Rotary International District of 268, to become later known as 9268. Until 2013 it remained in this District but in 2014 a redistribution by RI renamed the District 9675. The Charter was presented by the late District Governor Harry Picket, who with his late wife, Lillian remained staunch supporters of the Club till their passing.
 
The Club commenced with twenty four members under the Presidency of Bill Boyce, whose classification at the time was Building Construction. Peter Foss, classification Education-Primary Schools remains the sole living Charter member of the Strathfield Club to this day. The Club to-day has a membership of forty nine members led by President Suzanne Freund, whose association with Rotary commenced as a member of the Blacktown Club. Her long time association with our inaugural Music Festival Co-ordinator and Master of Ceremonies, Mr Pat Drummond, a one time student of the Australian Catholic University, has forged the link which has introduced the "Horizon" concept to this local musical Event for the diverse present day Strathfield community.
 
Strathfield Rotary Club cherishes its long association with Strathfield Council over the intervening period, especially as three of our members have been Strathfield Mayors including Bill Boyce, Clarrie Edwards and Eve Dutton. Bill Boyce had been associated with Strathfield Council for twenty four years. Another three members, George Hallworth, Peter Smith and Ray Wilson OAM have all been Strathfield Councillors. Bill Boyce was six times Mayor and three times Deputy Mayor. Approximately four thousand dollars was raised in the first year (1971) of the Club with distributions being made to the Western Suburbs District Hospital Intensive Care Unit, Mission to Seamen, Disaster Fund for Famine Areas in New Guinea, the National Heart Foundation, Lifeline and Citizenship Awards for District Schools. Modern day President, Suzanne is a trainer for Lifeline and we have continued the process of awarding Annual Citizenship Awards to the Public and Independent Schools in our area.
 
In 1980 a five foot long metal time capsule was placed in a secure well marked area of the Strathfield Plaza concourse with a Rotary Wheel emblem to coincide with the opening of the Plaza. Envelopes were sold for two dollars and five dollars, into which contributors could place memorabilia for sighting in the year 2000. This unearthing took place, though much of the contents of the capsule remain to this day, and until the Plaza management, in the not too distant future arrange for the area to be renovated. For many years this area was the location of the Rotary Christmas Stocking Guessing Competition, as a lead up to the Festive Season. Since 1988 the Club has had an ongoing relationship with Strathfield Council through its presence at the annual December  "Carols in the Park". This presence has always featured the Rotary BBQ Trailer for the serving of our special recipe Sausage Sandwiches-with or without onion. For a shorter time the same BBQ presence could be found at the Council Australia Day Citizenship Presentation.
 
Strathfield Rotary Club has supported the nomination of four past District Governors from its ranks over the intervening forty three years, including Bob Taylor, Paul Sarks, David Croft and Harley Tarrant. Each has left his imprimatur on membership with Harley in particular being responsible for the formation of the recently formed Breakfast Point Rotary Club. He was for many years the Administrative Head of the Parramatta office of Rotary International for the Asia and Pacific Region.
 
PP Roger Vince has been a faithful and unobtrusive leader of the Meriden College, Strathfield Interact Club which has many positive outcomes of community endeavours to its name. It raises substantial amount of funds and recently supported the educational programs of a Girls' School in Thailand. More recently President Elect Allan Teale has been responsible for the formation of an Interact Club at Homebush Boys' High School. President Elect Teale has been supported in this venture by Rotarians Smith and Vatalis for the development of a Breakfast Club for boys at this school. The Bendigo Bank has been responsible for financially supporting this much needed project. Students from Strathfield Girls' High School present an informative and analytical approach to the books recommended by the Childrens' Book Council each year to an audience of  Rotarians and their parents at a Club Meeting each May. During the same month the Club joins with the Strathfield Council in presenting Youth Achievement Awards for participants in the categories of Girls and Boys' Sport, Public Speaking and Environmental Studies. These two programs display the diversity of culture, personal interests and skills of the participants with a variety that is outstandingly impressive and strongly supported by the friends of our Club. Chalmers Road Special School students have been the recipients of our fund raising endeavours as we have supported the daily usage of their school bus, used for transporting students to and from school or while visiting excursions sites. The Club International Director was responsible recently for holding a Korean Theme Event as part of a weekly Club Meeting. It involved members and invited Korean guests in a food tasting of Korean food, and experience of native costumed dancers and the viewing of a film alerting the very well attended audience to the nature of this culture.
 
Most recently we have co-operated with the Strathfield Council in introducing the resource of the Graffiti Trailer through State Government Funding and the Dulux Paint Company. A willing band of members and some members of the local Volunteers' Network spend a Sunday morning removing unwanted tags from local public and in some cases private dwellings and structure.  
 
Beyond our local community we contribute funds and support to the Ranfurly Library Service, the Rotary Foundation Centurion Program, Shelterbox; and Rotarians against Malaria. Over the years financial support has been extended to the Homebush/Strathfield Meals on Wheels Management Committee and the local Mens' Shed Management. We have accommodated as many participants as our budget permits for RI programs such as RYLA (Rotary Youth Leadership Award); RYPEN (Rotary Youth Program of Enrichment);RYDA (Rotary Youth Driver Awareness) and NYSF (National Youth Science Forum) and are always amazed at the presentations that the returning Secondary School students present to Club members at a weekly meeting.
 
This record of outcomes mounted by the Strathfield Rotary Club, in many ways enabled by the Strathfield Council and for the upcoming Musical Event, that is known as the "Horizon", with the active support and encouragement of the executive staff of the Australian Catholic University we are delighted to be able to mount this planned inaugural event of local musical and creative entertainment for a worthy community.
May we all experience in some way, for music does move in people in varying ways, a horizon of appreciating as an adult a different music genre to our usual first choice, and for the younger generation a horizon that looks beyond the here and now and anticipate a means of improving the life and circumstance of others.

 

The Rotary Club of Galston 2006/2007

PRESIDENT: Suzanne Freund

President Elect:
Vice President:
Secretary:
Treasurer:
Country Music Festival Chairman:

Immediate Past President: Ray Wilson

CLUB SERVICE COMMITTEE

Director:

Sergeant:
Corporal:
Attendance:
Program Officer:
Bulletin Editor:
Publicity:
Historian:
Social Events:
Membership:

VOCATIONAL SERVICE COMMITTEE

Director:
Members:

COMMUNITY SERVICE COMMITTEE

Director:
Members:

INTERNATIONAL SERVICE COMMITTEE:

Director:
Members:

YOUTH SERVICE COMMITTEE

Director:
Members:

HORIZON FESTIVAL COMMITTEE

Chairman Suzanne Freund, Pat Drummond, Allan Pettersen, Rod McDougal;
 

Strathfield Rotary Honorary Members

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